


fire

by HeavenlyDusk



Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, like literally two sentences, nothing explicit just laurent's uncle briefly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-15
Updated: 2016-07-15
Packaged: 2018-07-24 03:55:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7492836
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeavenlyDusk/pseuds/HeavenlyDusk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laurent was the "Ice Prince" of Vere University, with his indifference towards everyone and the way he shot down any and all suitors.</p>
<p>So nobody really expected Damen.</p>
<p>(Or, in which Laurent is hopelessly in love and can't help but smile whenever Damen is around)</p>
            </blockquote>





	fire

**Author's Note:**

> So I haven't read TCP in like a month and because someone didn't let me buy the books, I couldn't remember like half of the things in them, so inaccuracies everywhere. Also I finished this at 1:30 in the morning so.
> 
> This is just... shameless Damen and Laurent, with Nikandros and Jord on the side. Where's Aimeric? He dated Jord for a bet and even though he later regretted it, Jord couldn't forgive him. (I love Aimeric, don't get me wrong, but he didn't fit in this story)
> 
> Uhh not much else to say here. I'm supposed to be writing my AFTG Cinderella AU, but I wanted to finish this first because I said I'd do it on tumblr. Enjoy my shitty 1:30 AM writing. (like half of this was written in the early hours of morning ngl and none of this was edited)

Vere University was commonly known as the school for the rich and powerful, but also the intelligent. You couldn’t get in without money and high grades. Getting a recommendation from a well-known scholar helped too.

Laurent never needed that. He had the money and the brains, but he was also the second son of the Headmaster. He attended Vere with his older brother, Auguste. They were both beautiful and cunning in their own ways. It was like they were the entities of elegance, but while Auguste was friendly and approachable, Laurent was all sharp eyes and cold indifference.

Everyone knew Auguste. He was the nice son of the Headmaster, seemingly perfect in every way. There was beauty in his blond hair and blue eyes, and even though he played a multitude of sports, he still held a sort of grace in his every move.

Since everyone knew Auguste, they knew that he adored his little brother. It didn’t take long for everyone to hear that Laurent would be attending Vere. It was to be expected, of course, but no one was quite prepared for the near-silence and disregard he had for most of the students.

Laurent was unlike Auguste in every way. He was beautiful whereas Auguste was handsome. He was cold whereas Auguste was warm. He was calculating whereas Auguste was reckless. He kept to himself whereas Auguste had a multitude of friends.

It unnerved most students when he simply waved off their greetings. Even with his cold greetings and general dislike for the majority of the student body, it didn’t stop men from trying to seduce him.

As said before, Laurent was _beautiful_. His cold personality made him seem all the more so. In his years at Vere, he made only a few friends, one of which was his brother. The men jumping at him certainly didn’t help. (Most of the school was, surprisingly, full of members of the LGBT community. It was a little strange, to be perfectly honest) Laurent brushed off any and all attempts at asking him for a date—even simple offers of a one-night stand were brushed off.

It only took a year for him to be dubbed the nickname “Ice Prince.”

There were many variations of his nickname, from “Frost Queen” to “Stone Heart” to—at one memorable point in time—“Elsa,” but “Ice Prince” was the one that truly stuck. The “King” was the Headmaster, so naturally, Auguste and Laurent were the “Princes.”

Very few had ever seen Laurent with any expression other than cold indifference. Those that had, well… They weren’t about to tell the students of Vere University anything.

* * *

“No.”

“I didn’t even-“

“No.”

Laurent’s expression hardly changed as he looked at the boy in front of him with an unimpressed look. A book sat open in his lap.

“Please, at least hear out my offer!” the boy begged.

“I’m reading,” Laurent said bluntly, holding up the book. “I know what you’re going to ask, and I’ve already told you no.”

“But-!”

“He said no.” Jord leaned against the bookshelf nearby, startling the boy. Laurent dragged his eyes over to him, not too surprised by his presence. “Go away. This is a library.” The boy, of course, was about to argue, but he saw something in Jord’s eyes that made him huff and scamper away instead.

“Protective, aren’t you?” Laurent commented absently, settling his book back in his lap.

“I wouldn’t have to be if you just made a public announcement telling your admirers to back off,” Jord said, taking a seat in the chair in front of him. Unlike Jord, Laurent sat in a large beanbag. They were nearer to the back of the library, but of course someone had spotted him. Fortunately, the library was the safest place for Laurent to hide. He was always able to play the “library” card, and the librarian adored him for whatever reason.

“Even if I did that, very few of them would listen,” Laurent pointed out.

“And that’s why you’re the Ice Prince.” Laurent rolled his eyes at the nickname and didn’t respond, looking down at his book.

They sat in silence for a long while, Jord browsing the shelves while Laurent read his book. When he finished his chapter, he shut the book and stood.

“Your classes are over, correct?” he said. Jord didn’t startle at his voice as he nodded. “Then let’s grab a coffee. Nikandros is probably working right about now.” He sent Jord a smirk, noticing how he fought down a blush.

“You’re just hoping Damen will be there,” Jord retorted. Laurent clicked his tongue and strolled passed him.

* * *

“Welcome to- Oh, it’s you.” Nikandros shot them unimpressed looks as he saw them enter. “Good afternoon, Jord. Laurent.” Laurent rolled his eyes at him, but Jord smiled.

“You too,” he said. He steadily ignored the tension between Laurent and Nikandros. He never quite understood why they hated each other, but it probably had to do with Damen. He played no part in their petty rivalry.

“You want your usuals then?” Nikandros asked.

“Depends.” Laurent glanced around the café, not even bothering to try and be subtle. Nikandros sighed.

“No, he’s not here today. He has practice today,” he told him, his tone unimpressed. “It’s Tuesday.”

“Barbarian,” Laurent huffed, but as it usually was, it was a touch fond. “Well then, there’s little point of me hanging around in your company any longer.”

“Hey, hey, you’re the one who invited me here,” Jord reminded him. “You’re staying until I finish my coffee.” Laurent scowled at him, but allowed him to order their usual drinks while he stomped – strutted – to a table near a window. Jord joined him soon after.

“You know, you _could_ just visit him yourself,” he said upon sitting down across from him. “I’m sure that’d make him happy.” Laurent wrinkled his nose.

“He’d be surrounded by sweaty men. Knowing him, he would try to hug me. Disgusting.”

“That doesn’t stop Lazar from visiting Pallas.”

“We’ve already established that Lazar is completely gone on that boy.”

“And you aren’t?” Jord grinned as Laurent stayed silent. “Besides, it’s not much different from visiting him when he gets out of classes. How about waiting outside his locker room or something after practice?”

“I thought you didn’t like him either.” Laurent narrowed his eyes.

“You’re changing the subject,” Jord said. “Damen is a good man, and you know that even better than I do. I don’t see the point to your aversion.”

“I don’t like sports.”

“You mean you don’t like the fact that he can get hurt.” Laurent glared, but Jord was unperturbed.

“Jord! Ice Prince!” Nikandros called, smirking as Laurent switched his glare over to him. Jord chuckled and went to grab their drinks.

“Speaking of practice, why isn’t he with him?” Laurent asked when Jord sat down again. “You’d think he’d skip out on work considering they’re both equally insane.”

“He did that too many times this month,” Jord explained. “If he did it again, he’d lose his job, and apparently he doesn’t want to have to sleep on Damen’s couch again. You’d certainly throw a fit.”

Laurent ignored the obvious teasing in order to raise an eyebrow and send a retort of his own. “And how do you know this?” Jord opened and closed his mouth, but nothing came out. Laurent lifted his cup before taking a sip, the smug clear on his face.

“Shut up.”

* * *

Laurent stood outside of the locker rooms at Akielos University. He stood in a casual posture, even as he wanted to fidget. He wasn’t used to being in Akielos, though it wasn’t the first time he had been there. He didn’t really like the students, much less the sports teams, but it was better than being visited in Vere.

He played with his phone, not actually doing anything other than send a few texts here and there. He didn’t look up until he heard the door open.

In all his glory stood Damianos – Damen to the people who knew him well. He was, perhaps, the definition of tall, dark, and handsome, except he had a grin that could outshine the sun and a booming laugh. He brightened even more when he saw Laurent and promptly abandoned his friends to make his way towards him.

“Laurent!” he said happily. “I wasn’t expecting you.” Laurent shrugged and pocketed his phone.

“I went to see you at the café, but you weren’t there,” he said. “Your friend reminded me that it was Tuesday. Jord convinced me to wait for you here.” Damen laughed.

“You can call him by his name, you know,” he told him.

“I’d rather not.” Damen sighed, but then he smiled and took one of Laurent’s hands. He lifted it to press a gentle kiss to his fingers. Laurent felt his face heat up, and he knew his usually pale cheeks had a hue of pink to them. It just made Damen smile wider.

“Now that you’re here,” he said, lowering his hand but not letting go, “did you want to come over?”

“Don’t you have friends that you were with?” Laurent said, sending a pointed look to the other men who had yet to leave them.

“It’s not like we were actually going to do anything,” Damen answered dismissively. “Besides, we didn’t have time to hang out over the weekend. You had your art thing, right?” Laurent nodded. He was an art major, and this meant he had a few projects to finish up on occasion. They left him unable to be around other people when he had something to finish.

“I have nothing going on for now, so I suppose I’ll indulge you.” Laurent had to look away when he felt as though Damen’s smile would blind him.

* * *

Akielos and Vere were rival universities. It had something to do with an old feud standing between the Headmasters, and each Headmaster thereafter tended to pick up on it.

Laurent met Damen during a huge scandal involving Damen’s half-brother, Kastor. While Damen’s father tried to deal with the charges, Damen was left trying to come to terms with everything.

He sat at the counter of café that Nikandros worked at, a small but popular place called Kingsmeet, when Laurent entered. Jord followed behind him, as did Orlant.

Laurent took one look at him and said, “You look dead on your feet.” And that was it. He was blunt and honest, not even sparing him another glance despite the glare Nikandros sent him. He met it was a blank stare and ordered his drink. It might have been a brief lapse of sanity, but Damen couldn’t help but laugh. Laurent only looked at him with confusion for half a second before Orlant started a fight.

Laurent was beautiful when Damen finally got a good look at him. Nikandros had identified the enamored look almost immediately, and groaned because Damen always liked the dangerous blonde types. (The last one he’d liked ended up cheating on him with his brother) He was quick to tell him not to pursue Laurent, and Damen agreed, thinking of how unlikely it was that he would see him again.

As it was, Laurent soon returned. The scandal with Kastor was continuing, so Damen spent most of his time with Nikandros, who was the only one to not bring it up around him. Laurent had seemed reluctant, and it was evident that it was Jord who had dragged him along. Seeing Nikandros’s smile, Damen could only guess as to why they returned.

Laurent looked put-off as Jord danced around flirting, so Damen thought it was just courteous to greet him. “It looks like you were unwillingly dragged here, huh?” he had said, smiling. Laurent just looked at him with slight disinterest.

“You don’t look as dead, anymore,” was all he said in response, but it made Damen laugh like it had last time.

“No, things are sort of settling down now,” he told him.

“Did I ask?” Laurent looked annoyed. It was cute.

“I guess not, but do you want to have to pay attention to those two?” Damen nodded his head towards Nikandros and Jord.

Begrudgingly, Laurent said, “No.”

Damen smiled. “I’m Damianos, but you can call me Damen.” He held out a hand. Hesitantly, Laurent shook it. Absentmindedly, Damen thought of how slender his hand was.

“Laurent.”

* * *

Laurent made no active attempt to speak with Damen, but Damen wouldn’t leave him alone while Nikandros and Jord did some weird version of flirting. Laurent didn’t actually like Damen for the first few months, annoyed with his incessant chatter and attempts at friendship. Laurent only came in when Jord made him come, and more often than not, Laurent didn’t respond to Damen other than a few words.

When the Kastor issue was long over, the verdict being Kastor guilty and spending life in prison, Laurent stopped coming. Jord came on his own, but he seemed a little quieter. Nikandros asked, but couldn’t get a straight answer. Damen didn’t say anything.

It was about a month later that Laurent came back. Damen had continued coming to the café, hoping to see the blond eventually, and he smiled when he saw him. Jord and Orlant were with him, and they all seemed relatively better.

Damen engaged Laurent in a conversation, asking what had happened. Laurent was quick to shut him down, and Damen didn’t push.

It was a few days later that Laurent gave Damen his number after he asked for the third time.

No matter how many times Laurent told him to stop, Damen kept texting him and talking to him, and eventually, Laurent showed to be a pleasant person. Laurent allowed a few smiles in when he accepted Damen’s invitations to hang out, and sometimes Damen caught him laughing behind his hand at some of the things Damen did. It made Damen smile wider every time.

When Laurent had called some time after their friendship truly began, choked up and not knowing who else to call, Damen was quick to let him come over. He had never been to Laurent’s house – Laurent had said something about being uncomfortable with it – so it was their only option. (Damen never did figure out how Laurent made it to his house when he was in near tears)

Damen had held Laurent close for the first time, that night. He listened to him talk about his brother and his uncle; his uncle had made an advance on his adopted brother, a sophomore in high school named Nicaise, and Auguste had come around in time to see him and wrestle him off. Apparently, Auguste was still recovering from some time in the hospital – the reason why Laurent had been gone that month – and got injured. Laurent’s uncle got arrested and was being put on trial, but he was a rich man and got away with a lot of things and Laurent was _scared_.

And Damen understood. He was angry. He wanted to hurt his uncle for scaring Laurent so badly, but he just tightened his grip ever-so-slightly and let him calm down.

It didn’t take long for the trial to finish, especially when Laurent had been called to the stand. He spoke clearly, as though his past was unimportant, but it was the final thing that called for his uncle to be stuck in prison. Damen saw the trial, as support for Laurent along with Jord, and he could hardly restrain himself from going up there and killing his uncle himself as Laurent spoke. He had wanted to punch him before, but now it was bloodlust and killing intent.

But then Laurent sent him a smile once everything was done, and Damen figured he could calm down.

In that moment, he realized that he had fallen in love.

* * *

Before Damen could properly ask Laurent out, he had to get through his brother. Damen was old-fashioned, and he knew if he wanted to do anything with Laurent, he should speak with his brother, who loved him more than anything if Laurent’s stories were anything to go by.

Damen came with Laurent to the hospital, where Auguste was still recovering from everything even though there had been time to settle down. Damen could clearly see the affection they held for one another, and he stood outside the room to let them talk.

After a while, Auguste asked about Damen. Laurent ushered him in and introduced them and Auguste, with his sunny and friendly nature, took a liking to him. He thanked him for being with Laurent when he couldn’t be. He told him to watch over him, laughing when Laurent flushed and told him to shut up. Then he gave Damen his number and told him to call him for anything.

Damen hadn’t called him until after he was out of the hospital. He stammered for a while, unsure of whether or not to tell him, before he just blurted out his request to ask Laurent out. Auguste was silent, and Damen was scared, but after some threatening, Auguste gave him his blessing. And then added another threat.

Damen had some nerves when he asked to hang out with Laurent the next day. Laurent came over, and their plan was to watch some movies. Damen’s father was out that night, and it wouldn’t be the first time they had spent a day in silence.

The first movie played with Damen unsure of when to talk and what to say. Laurent got impatient, easily detecting how on edge Damen was, so he had demanded to know what was wrong.

And Damen told him after a pause and a deep breath.

Much like his brother, Laurent was quiet. Damen worried, but then Laurent said, “I’ve been waiting for you to say that, you brute.” And then he kissed him and Damen later said that it was probably the best he’d felt in a long time.

* * *

Laurent smiled softly in the privacy of Damen’s room, wrapped in Damen’s large arms as he read a book. He knew Damen wasn’t reading it over his shoulder like he pretended to, but he said nothing. He rested his head in the crook of his neck, feeling his arms tighten just so around him.

If anyone from Vere saw him like he was, they would hardly believe that it was their “Ice Prince.” In the year that Laurent and Damen were together, Laurent allowed himself to show some softness around him. To him, Damen was safety and warmth, and so he didn’t mind showing his affection for him. (It made Nicaise irritable, but Laurent just scolded him lightly and let him be)

“It’s getting late,” Damen murmured. “Do you want to stay the night? I have some clothes you can borrow.” Laurent had left some of his clothes at Damen’s house before.

“We both have classes tomorrow,” Laurent said, closing his book after marking his page. He made no move to get up. “It’s easier if I just head home now.”

“I can drive you home in the morning, or I can just drive you straight to school. I’m sure there’s still some clothes in the back of my closet.” There were more than just “some.” Damen had a drawer of just Laurent’s clothes.

“You’re not going to let me up until I agree, are you?” Laurent lifted his head to look at him. Damen smiled and kissed his temple gently.

“Nope.”

Laurent sighed. “Alright, fine. Whatever you want.” Damen whooped and nuzzled him happily. Laurent huffed and half-heartedly struggled in his arms, eventually settling down with a disgruntled scowl. It was far from genuine, and it just made Damen kiss him.

* * *

Laurent and Damen woke up late. Not particularly late, but late enough that Laurent couldn’t head home before his first class started.

“I’ll drive you,” Damen promised over breakfast. “Is that okay with you?” Laurent pursed his lips. He didn’t want Damen at his school, mostly because he rather liked acting as though he were untouchable, but he didn’t want to break his perfect attendance record either.

“I suppose it’s fine,” he sighed. “I can’t very well walk.”

Soon, Damen was driving Laurent to Vere. The ride was quiet, as it was still morning, with the radio playing softly. It was comfortable and familiar, not awkward.

When they got to Vere, Laurent pressed a kiss to Damen’s cheek before getting out of the car. “I’ll see you later?” He spoke in French, not wanting anyone nearby to overhear them. (They found out that they both spoke French a while back. It was useful when they didn’t want some people to overhear them, although it didn’t do well against Nicaise and Jord)

“Text me,” Damen responded in the same language. He grinned. Laurent gave him an unimpressed look and shut the door, striding into his university like the Prince he was. Some people gave him strange looks, not recognizing the car, but they didn’t ask at his sharp look.

* * *

As it turned out, “later” was after Laurent’s classes. Laurent had texted Damen to meet him at the café to get that coffee they couldn’t get the day before, but Lazar tripped down some steps. As Laurent was the one who was around, he took Lazar to the nurse’s room.

All Lazar did was twist an ankle, but he insisted Laurent wait until Pallas – his boyfriend at Akielos – arrived. Laurent breathed a deep sigh and texted Damen that Lazar was holding him up, so he would probably be a while.

Pallas did arrive after twenty minutes, properly scolding Lazar, but from the grin on his face, Lazar was hardly listening. Laurent used that time to slip out, and he was startled to see Damen a little ways away with a sheepish grin on his face.

“Damen!” Laurent hurried over to him. There were still quite a few people milling around, but he didn’t pay them any attention. “I told you to wait at the café!”

“I, ah, actually gave Pallas a ride here,” Damen explained, leaning down to peck Laurent’s cheek. Laurent flushed, and he could only hope his expression was somewhat neutral. (It wasn’t)

“I was under the impression that he could drive and had his own car,” Laurent said, raising an eyebrow.

“He doesn’t live far, so he walked today, but when Lazar called, he asked me to drive him over here,” Damen told him. Laurent sighed.

“Well, I guess this means we can head to the café together,” he said. Damen grinned again and took his hand in his as he began to lead him to his car. Laurent blushed darker, but he squeezed his hand and allowed himself to lean just the slightest bit closer to him.

And then he remembered that they weren’t alone.

* * *

“Damn.” Jord grinned. “Now the school knows that you aren’t an Ice Prince.”

“It’s all Damianos’s fault,” Laurent mumbled. Damen chuckled beside him and pulled him close.

“It’s not my fault you’re so taken by me,” he teased. Laurent glared and hit him over the head.

* * *

Laurent offered no explanations for the other students. He still looked at them all with a piercing gaze. He didn’t talk to many of them unless spoken to, and he handled them with indifference.

And nobody really knew who Damen was, but at the very least, he made Laurent’s ice melt every time he came by.

(It was the only time people could see even a hint of a smile on his face)

**Author's Note:**

> Kastor was arrested for murder and the only reason things were difficult was because he had influence.
> 
> Due to the fact that Damen didn't do anything to Auguste, Laurent didn't hate him, so he just considered him an annoyance until Damen just wouldn't stop leaving the pretty boy alone.
> 
> If I forgot anything else, oh well. I'll probably edit this in like thirteen hours.


End file.
